Table of contents for April 2018 in Getaway

If you travel often enough, the one thing you learn how to do is say goodbye. It’s not easy. There are a number of factors to consider when creating a good and, most importantly, awkward-free farewell. For one, make sure you’re going in the opposite direction once the goodbyes have been said. There’s nothing more ridiculous than having to hide behind the sour worms in Sweets From Heaven for an hour because you didn’t realise the backpacking mate you just said goodbye to at the check-in counter is actually on the same flight as you. True story. But, in fact, there is something more ridiculous: a flight companion who says goodbye while you’re still on the aeroplane, where there’s nowhere to go. This happened recently on a flight to Joburg.…

EQUIPMENT DSLR A wide-angle lens (16-35mm, 17-40mm) is best. Use a tripod, shutter-release cable and a graduated neutral density filter for top results. Compact Switch to landscape mode for a more dynamic range to combat high-contrast scenes. SETTINGS Set your camera on a tripod. Use manual mode and an aperture of f/8 or more to maintain sharpness throughout your image. If there’s movement in your scene – such as in Hougaard’s – use a fast shutter speed (1/125 or more) so there is no blur. Balance your exposure by first increasing the ISO and then opening the aperture if absolutely necessary. If there is no movement in your scene, set your ISO as low as possible and compensate for the narrow aperture by opening the shutter for as long as…

TELESCOPES ENTRY-LEVEL CELESTRON POWERSEEKER 60AZ R1 399, glagencies.co.za Like most of the telescopes I tested, setting this up took about five minutes. It has two eyepieces: a 20mm with 35x magnification and a 4mm with 175x magnification. According to experts I spoke to, entry-level telescopes are really only suitable for kids – and, in fact, the tripod on this one was so low I ended up on my knees when using it. Looking through this telescope made more stars visible than I could see with the naked eye, and one would see the moon and nearby planets but no gazing beyond into deep space. A plus is that the optics have been inverted so this telescope can be used to view objects on Earth as well. THE…

• Don’t rush out to buy a telescope as they can frustrate beginners. Rather acquaint yourself with the night sky first and get to know a few planets and constellations. Star maps, sky guides, apps and astronomy clubs are extremely helpful. • Know when to look and track lunar events. The sky is best on clear winter nights when there’s no humidity in the air. Moonless nights (or nights close to new moon) are also best. • Know the difference between planets and stars. If a bright light in the sky twinkles, it’s a star. If an object is much brighter than those around it, it’s probably a planet. • Turn on the red light if you want to refer to a map or book while stargazing (or find your mug of Milo). A…

I first learnt to swim without armbands in the pool at Bergen-Dal rest camp when I was six. I also used to do ‘game drives’ sitting on my dad’s lap in the car and steering the wheel towards impala, giraffes and more. Dad could ‘smell’ a zebra from kilometres away, with those superpowers only parents seem to have – much to my and my sister’s delight. (Said sister once took a giant swig of gin when my folks failed to pack any juice for us on our afternoon drive, but remembered their own tonics and decanted some gin into a water bottle.) Kruger is also where I learned how to identify birds: my first, the colourful lilac-breasted roller. Kruger National Park was founded 120 years ago and stretches for 350…

TOUR THE MEKONG DELTA Twice the size of Kruger, the Mekong Delta is where one-third of the country’s fresh produce is grown. Backyard Travel offers multi-day trips through the delta. Your days will be spent cycling and strolling through the web of waterways, paths, alleys and roads that lead through crops and plantations, and you’ll explore floating markets, small home industries and villages. Budget From R4 485 pp, including transport from Saigon and accommodation in the delta. backyardtravel.com Get there The delta is a two-hour drive southwest of Saigon. CHILL AT THE BEACH With an extensive white-sand beach and warm, calm sea, Cam Ranh Bay is set to become Vietnam’s big resort destination (a lot of it is currently under construction). The Anam is a luxurious but laid-back resort where…

As a former air hostess, I’m no stranger to travel, hotels and living out of a suitcase. But my time in the sky has made me a bit of a hotel snob – I became accustomed to four- and five-star living. By the time I returned to settle in South Africa and had to start booking my own accommodation, I had developed an unhealthy warped reality. Fast-forward a few years and here I am, reflecting on my first real eco-friendly weekend away. My husband and I, along with our two dogs, recently spent a weekend at Simonskloof Mountain Retreat near Montagu. Hidden deep in the mountains, the rustic cottages have no electricity or phone signal. Solar panels and gas power your showers and meals, solar lanterns light your way. Dinners…

Tintswalo Safari Manor House MPUMALANGA A short drive from safari hub Hoedspruit, Manyeleti Game Reserve (the name means ‘place of stars’) shares an unfenced boundary with the Kruger National Park in one of its most productive predator areas – the Satara region – and also borders the famous Sabi Sands and Timbavati game reserves. You can’t beat the prime location of Tintswalo Safari Lodge. Ideal for families and small groups of friends, the recently revamped Manor House accommodates between six and 10 guests in a splendid private holiday villa complete with a pool, butler, talented chef, exquisite dining boma beneath the stars, access to your own game-drive vehicle and guide, plus an exclusive waterhole – so you have bathing, splashing elephants all to yourself. Boasting fresh new interior design, including…

Travellers are pretty resourceful, so it didn’t surprise me when I discovered our deputy editor uses a toiletry bag for his electronics and our editor uses a pencil case. They both kind of work, but not really… It would seem my superiors are yet to master Zen and the Art of Cable Maintenance. But the Thule Subterra PowerShuttle addresses this. ‘Bring your life’ is its motto, and for travellers that’s exactly what this electronics holder does. The size of an A5 diary, it has a firm 800D nylon-padded casing, inside compartments, zippered pockets and elasticated loops, and is designed to store your charger, cords, hard drive, SD cards, earphones, a small notebook and a pen (even in the Digital Age a pen always comes in handy). A brilliant feature is…

The new NIKON 180-400mm F/4E TC1.4 FL ED VR telephoto lens comes with a rather interesting feature (other than the longest name for a lens we’ve ever heard): a built-in 1.4x converter. It’s a first for the marque and is aimed at the more moneyed wildlife photographers looking to lighten their lens loads. A single flip of a switch engages the converter, which automatically drops the maximum aperture and increases the zoom. On a full-frame DSLR that takes the zoom to 242-560mm and on a DX-format camera you’ll get a whopping 378-840mm (maximum aperture f/5.6 for both). From R168 000. nikon.co.za For photographers who love the little things (keep an eye out for our macro Masterclass in the July issue), the Autumn Garden Show in Joburg is a…

2018’S GETAWAY GALLERY WINNER is in for a spectacular holiday to one of Africa’s most photogenic destinations. The winner, plus a partner, will fly from Joburg to Nosy Be, courtesy of Airlink. There, they’ll be taken to Sakatia Lodge on Sakatia Island. Set between the ocean, a natural rainforest and mangroves, the lodge offers the quintessential island holiday. This prize was arranged by MadagasCaT Charters and Travel, specialists in all travel to Nosy Be. GRAND PRIZE A TRIP FOR TWO TO NOSY BE IN MADAGASCAR WORTH R64 262 AND CANON GEAR WORTH R38 999! THE PRIZE INCLUDES: • two return air tickets (incl. taxes) on Airlink from Joburg to Nosy Be, valid for one year (2019, excl. prime seasons); • full-board accommodation for two at Sakatia Lodge in…

SKYVIEW This was the best of the apps I tried. It’s free, easy to use and has all the information that makes stargazing fascinating. Just aim your phone at the sky (night or day) and, using augmented reality, it will point out constellations, planets and satellites. Tapping the constellation or planet displayed on the screen brings up data about its history, its connection to mythology and astrology, as well as links to its Wikipedia page. Conversely, if you want to know where a specific object is, just enter its name and the app will find it. Skyview also alerts you to upcoming sightings in the home screen drop-down menu with the ‘Today’ widget. Spending time on a lounger with this app and a pair of binoculars shot my…

Many experts recommend that beginners learn the night skies from other people. There are astronomy clubs all over SA keen to share their passion, knowledge – and telescopes • The Astronomical Society of Southern Africa, for amateur and professional astronomers, has eight centres around the country (including Durban, Joburg, Pretoria and the Garden Route) that hold regular meetings. assa.saao.ac.za • The SA Astronomical Observatory in Cape Town has monthly talks and stargazing sessions on the second and fourth Saturday of every month. saao.ac.za • West Rand Astronomy Club, based in Witpoortjie, meets on the last Wednesday of each month. wrac.org.za • The Friends of Boyden in Bloemfontein organise lectures and viewing sessions at the Boyden Observatory. assabfn.co.za/friendsofboyden/ • Die Orion Observasie Groep has regular stargazing evenings during the summer months at the Taal Monument in…

GETTING THERE It’s a four-hour hop on British Airways or Air Mauritius, departing from Joburg, Durban and Cape Town. No visas are required. From R5 539 pp, travelstart.co.za NEED TO KNOW Fresh fruit costs between R5 and R9 a piece. A mixed dim sum bowl from a street cart is about R20, while most restaurants charge about R80 for fried noodles and around R147 for fresh grilled fish (dorado). I paid R74 for a two-kilometre taxi ride (I suspect this was too much); unless you’re staying in the south, airport transfers can be ludicrously expensive (about R735) so get a hotel deal that includes this. WHEN TO GO The rainy season is from January to March (often there are cyclones) and the east coast gets very windy in July and…

TAKE THE HEAT R1 499, outdoorwarehouse.co.za We featured the RinseKit portable shower system (R1 595) in the November 2017 issue. Now there’s a Hot Rod Water Heater for it, just in time for this winter’s camping or hiking. It runs off a car battery (plugging into the accessory socket) and warms water within minutes of flipping the switch. GET A GRIP R350, shopfuelbelt.co.za Trail runners will love this light and squeezable water bottle that slips onto your hand. A thumb loop allows the FuelBelt to naturally stick to your hand as opposed to you needing to consciously grip. It holds just under 300ml, so it’s fairly light but can still provide the vital hydration needed on longer runs. The strap is adjustable, and it has…

27 – 29 APRIL This year’s festival will be a celebration of what the community has achieved over the past year, in terms of conservation and eco-friendly initiatives. It can now lay claim to being one of the best-kept seaside villages in SA. Look forward to a selection of live music on two stages, guided walks and a fun run in the morning; on the food side, anything from seafood potjies and spit braais to German fare and mussel pots plus a cocktail bar, bubbly and oysters, wine tastings and beer on tap. And for the children, a funfair, magicians and a skateboard ramp await. The popular dog show will take place again and the treasure hunt has a grand prize of R15 000. pringlebayfestival.com…

April is my birthday month and therefore the cruellest month but not in Andalusia. I was in Southern Spain for two weeks, staying in a small white stone-walled farmhouse on the edge of a mesa overlooking the Jorox River valley. There were lemon trees and olive groves all around and in the middle distance the blue-grey Sierra de las Nieves, the ‘mountains of the snows’. If there is a better place to spend a birthday, I want you to tell me about it. When you are younger you think a lot on your birthday about growing older, but when you’re older you think about growing old. I drove down to the sea to Málaga and walked up the steep hill to the Moorish fortress, telling myself, ‘See? You can still…

Two-night stay at Tintswalo Safari Lodge worth R42 000 The bush has always been my favourite place to travel, so this prize is a dream come true. I really enjoy reading Getaway and it always inspires me to plan trips and has helped me make some amazing memories so far. Thank you for this incredible prize. – Charne Penfold Four spots on the Tok Tokkie Trail in Namibia worth R13 960 Winning this competition has made 2018 a very exciting prospect. This is the perfect opportunity to get my rear into action and explore what Namibia has to offer. A new door has been opened in my life and I am truly grateful. – Marene Malan A R3 000 shopping spree at Duesouth I am an avid hiker and love…

SOCIAL SCENE ‘Glenwood doesn’t have enough bars, unless you are a student or like sports bars! I’d say the best grown-up place to drink is The Glenwood Restaurant – it has become famous for martinis.’ 113 Brand Road, 082-617-9768. ‘There is also The Winston, which has a long and respectable tradition of alternative live music and now has underground comedy too.’ 9 Clark Road, 072-100-5353 LOCAL CUISINE ‘Habesha Café for very delicious Ethiopian food (124 Helen Joseph Road, 076-046-2516), Mooki Noodles for the brown rice with peanut and chilli (190 Brand Road, 031-811- 9199) and Mrs Govender’s Curry Kitchen (483 Sydney Road, 031-205-3374).’ CO-OWNER OF THE GLENWOOD BAKERY Carin’s chef husband Adam had previously owned only restaurants and gastro pubs. ‘But he’d always baked bread for them. When he sold…

Marthinus Ferreira of DW Eleven-13, Joburg Cooking is my life – it does not go on a break when I’m on holiday. I try do one food trip a year overseas. I was in Sweden and Denmark in 2017, and I’m going to Italy this year. I love seeing what is happening in Europe – it gives me perspective and inspiration. Barcelona is foodie paradise. I could sit in the La Boqueria market every day and experience something new every time. The best meal I’ve ever had on holiday was by chance, at Anse Soleil in the Seychelles. Fish straight out of the sea, cooked in front of me. No bookings – simply first come, first served. I love England. I worked there for almost three years. I went from…

We’ve discussed how shooting with a smaller aperture will (generally) give you a sharper overall image, but there’s another factor to consider when shooting into the sun: the size of your aperture affects the way its rays are captured. This is due to diffraction. As you close down your aperture, the shape of the hole through which light enters your camera begins to have an increased defining effect on your light source. At really small apertures, even the junctions between your aperture blades start to impact that shape – you’ll notice your light source start to streak. These are called sunbursts (or starbursts). Shoot with a narrow aperture for images in which you want the sun to be more of a subject. The narrower your aperture, the more defined it…

• Most of the stars you see in the night sky are bigger and brighter than the sun. The dimmest of the 50 most prominent stars in our sky is Alpha Centauri, which is more than 1.5 times brighter than the sun. • The farthest object spotted by the Hubble Space Telescope is a tiny red smudge about 13.4 billion light years away, near the dawn of the birth of the universe. • The object generally regarded as the most distant the average backyard astronomer can see is the quasar 3C273, about 2.5 billion light years away. • There are 200 – 400 billion stars in our Milky Way galaxy. The Hubble reveals an estimated 100 billion galaxies in the universe, but this number is likely to increase to about 200 billion as space…

GETTING THERE The drive from Cape Town on the N2 takes about six hours, including a quick stop at the Houw Hoek Farm Stall near Grabouw for its famous pies. You can fly from Johannesburg to George with FlySafair for about R1 300 return. The drive from the airport to Knysna is about an hour. flysafair.co.za NEED TO KNOW The fire damage was severe in Brenton, but most places in Knysna and surrounding areas are open for business. The town’s popular Oyster Festival was hosted last year just a few weeks after the fires, to give you an idea of the area’s resilience. If you are going this year (29 June to 8 July), book your place to stay well in advance. DO THIS Hike the Drupkelders Trail for a…

of Saigon’s Tao Dan Park, each day begins with a gathering of songbirds. Warblers, white-eyes, bulbuls and finches – prized, every one of them, for their beautiful voices – hang in collections of bamboo cages, from where their songs spill into the city’s early morning air. Around low plastic tables, time is kept by the slow, steady drip-drip-drip of filtering coffee, while cigarette smoke twirls to the inaudible melody of a tepid morning breeze. The birds arrive at the park on the back of scooters. Their cages are strapped to the bikes or backs of their owners, always men, who come to this cafe to meet with friends, discuss breeding and listen out for the sweetest of voices. Upon arrival the cages are hung onto a metal framework around the…

THE INSIDER Morris Rosenblatt moved to Pringle Bay after buying the only restaurant in town, sight unseen. He planned to come for two years and has stayed for 22. The peaks of Hangklip and Klein Hangklip rise either side of Pringle Bay like arms of a monumental armchair. Between the two peaks lies a beach nearly a kilometre in length. At one end, near a milkwood forest, the beach meets the Buffels River where elusive yet playful otters are said to roam at dusk and dawn. Dolphins and whales cavort in the turquoise sea, oystercatchers nest on the beach and caracals hunt dassies on the rocks. As Morris Rosenblatt tells me, ‘Living in Pringle Bay means living with nature.’ Morris moved to Pringle Bay in 1996. Back then, just 190…

Lezette van Jaarsveld, retired PR officer ‘My favourite thing to do is walk with my dogs in the hills around town. Twice a day, every day. The hiking is also good, with Brodie Link and Hangklip the best.‘ Lauren Cornell, freelance photographer ‘I like to go surfing on main beach, or if the waves aren’t working I go for a paddle up the Buffels River.’ Morne Lloyd, restaurant owner ‘ The main beach is great for a walk but I actually prefer Moonlight Bay. It’s beautiful, secluded and very quiet.’…

15... That was the age of the Xhosa girl, Nongqawuse, when she made her famous prophesies in 1856. She claimed ancestral spirits had told her the Xhosa nation was about to enter a golden age. In order to achieve this, the people had to slaughter all their cattle and destroy their crops. Great famine ensued. Today, Qolora, the place where the drama unfolded, is a sleepy Wild Coast village untroubled by its stormy history. It has two fine resorts, a stretch of ravishing coast, lagoons, waterfalls and pristine forests. Find out how to make the most of a trip to this beautiful corner of the ‘old Transkei’ in the next issue of Getaway .…